Google has been getting its fair share of grief as of late regarding the changes it has made in its SERP’s (search engine result pages). Most people are aware of how they have juggled the results for local search to show more of their Place Page results. It’s this new feature, which apparently is upsetting many vertical niche information and review aggregators.

As it relates to the SMB the position should really be a big “So what?” Why? Because it’s the local players (often the SMB) that get better position and attention to the searcher and for good reason. If someone is looking for a local result the last thing they want is to be sent to another site that they need to navigate and search to find the specifics they are looking for.

So what does this mean to the SMB in a practical sense? It simply means that you need to sure up every last piece of information that Google has about your business because there is opportunity. Place Pages emphasis is one of the best things to happen to search in a long time. It gives direct answers to questions. It gives better options for the searcher. It gives variety.

Ok, so they are Google properties. But guess what? It’s Google’s business and they can do whatever they want. Let everyone cry and whine about how unfair it is but that is going to fall on deaf ears here at least. As a free market guy I don’t want to ever see the government or regulatory agencies get in the way of a companies ability to make money for itself even if it is seen as a utility for the rest of the world. Nothing is worse than seeing a penalty imposed on someone for being too successful (unless you are a bank of course J).

In order for a Place Page to perform it is imperative that the information that is in the listing is accurate and it is consistent across the Internet. Google checks these things and it plays in how they will rank your Place Page.

If you are seeing that a Google Place Page is an important part of your future business success then check out how we can help put your business data in tip top shape in many of the most important directories and information outlets across the Internet.

Considering the size of the investment you may truly have a lot to lose if you don’t and that would be a shame.